Antonio Conte told 21-year-old can replace David Luiz at Chelsea

Andreas Christensen looks like a real prospect at Chelsea, Garth Crooks has claimed.
The promising 21-year-old centre-half has established himself as a first-choice defender under Blues manager Antonio Conte.

Christensen has managed to usurp David Luiz and secure a regular starting spot alongside Cesar Azpilicueta and Gary Cahill despite the addition of Antonio Rudiger in a £34m deal from AS Roma in the summer.

His standout moment came in October when the Denmark international managed to tame Romelu Lukaku in Chelsea’s 1-0 win against title rivals Manchester United at Stamford Bridge.

Christensen has made eight starts and three substitute appearances in the Premier League after he returned from a two-season loan spell at Borussia Monchengladbach.

The Chelsea starlet got some vital experience under his belt in the Bundesliga during a 24-month stint at Monchengladbach, also sampling Europa League and Champions League football.

Former Spurs forward Crooks has lavished praise on Christensen for his exciting performances in the Chelsea defence.

“I must say that particular performance passed me by, but since David Luiz fell out of favour at Chelsea, the young Denmark international has been making a bit of a name for himself and looks a real prospect,” Crooks told BBC Sport.

Crooks added: “There is no doubt Christensen is not in Luiz’s class yet, but if the Dane continues to progress at this rate manager Antonio Conte might consider releasing the high-maintenance Luiz at the end of the season as he has the far-less-combustible Christensen.”

The west London side lost 1-0 to West Ham United in the derby at the London Stadium on Saturday.

Chelsea have won the Premier League titles in two of the past three seasons under Jose Mourinho and then Conte.